


Baking Friends

by cordeliadelayne



Category: Atlantis (UK TV)
Genre: Baking, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-08
Updated: 2016-12-08
Packaged: 2018-09-07 08:25:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8790622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cordeliadelayne/pseuds/cordeliadelayne
Summary: Pythagoras is a good cook and so, it turns out, is Ariadne.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [deinonychus_1](https://archiveofourown.org/users/deinonychus_1/gifts).



> Written as a Christmas present for the lovely deinonychus_1 using the prompt “I am not obsessed with triangles”.

“I am not obsessed with triangles.”

Ariadne paused outside of Pythagoras' work room, frowning. She placed an ear close to the door and waited.

“I am not obsessed with triangles,” Pythagoras said again. Ariadne listened but she couldn't hear anybody else inside the room.

Finally she decided to knock and smiled to herself as Pythagoras clearly knocked several things over onto the floor.

“One minute!”

Ariadne tried to put on a serious expression as Pythagoras opened the door, covered in flour.

“Am I interrupting something?” Ariadne asked, trying to peek around the door to see what Pythagoras had been up to.

“No?” Pythagoras said, sounding unsure. “I mean, your highness, how are...were we trying to, did we have, um come in?”

Ariadne blinked as she tried to understand what Pythagoras was asking her.

“I do think we had arranged to meet, hadn't we?” she asked.

Pythagoras blushed and took a step back. “Yes, sorry. Come in.”

Ariadne followed Pythagoras into the room, determined not to react negatively to anything she might find there.

There was a fine coating of flour on the floor and table and in the middle of the table four triangular pieces of dough were waiting, ready to be put in the oven. There was also a fine coating of flour over Pythagoras' clothes and hair, now that Ariadne was close enough for a proper look.

“Um, I was just – for the celebration.”

“Of course,” Ariadne said. “I didn't know you cooked.”

Pythagoras looked both sheepish and pleased at Ariadne's attention and she tried not to find it adorable. Or at least let it show exactly how adorable she was finding it.

“Well, somebody has to keep Hercules fed.”

Ariadne smiled. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

She wasn't supposed to know anything about cooking, it being deemed beneath a member of the royal family to know about such menial tasks, but she had often befriended the servants and cooks and been allowed to watch them at their work, and even make some pastries of her own that her father had enjoyed without having any idea she had been behind them.

Pythagoras looked like he was going to refuse and then suddenly changed his mind.

“If you could finish rolling the pastry for me, that would be very helpful.”

“Of course? Do they need to be in triangular form?”

Pythagoras sighed and then grinned when he realised she was teasing him. “Anything would be better than triangles. Hercules and Jason are already going to enjoy this far too much.” He started tidying up around her as she rolled the pasty, remembering what the cook had taught her about a liberal use of flour. “I didn't mean to make them triangles, I just couldn't stop myself. I was thinking about the angle of...” He trailed off. “Well, doesn't matter. But no triangles, please.”

Ariadne nodded and started making some circles and squares. Pythagoras watched her for a few seconds and then apparently satisfied that she knew what she was doing, went about preparing the vegetables for the soup he was also going to make.

“Did you volunteer for this?” Ariadne asked.

“Sort of,” Pythagoras replied and Ariadne smiled. Why did she think Hercules was behind this somewhere? “Hercules lost a bet and in order to stop him being thrown into the cells I said I would help with the catering for the solstice celebrations. He was supposed to help me but he and Jason said they had something to take care of this morning and I haven't seen them since.”

“I'm sure they had a good reason,” Ariadne said.

“They better have,” Pythagoras muttered under his breath. Ariadne tried to keep a straight face and focused on her work.

It was a very companionable silence that they settled in to and Ariadne felt the worries of the day slowing slipping away. She and Pythagoras were supposed to be meeting about some medicinal herbs that she wanted to learn more about, but this was much more interesting.

Soon Pythagoras was comfortable enough to be humming under his breath, a song Ariadne recognised from her own childhood. Despite what her father had liked to say, there really wasn't much difference between her and her people.

“Is this all right?” she asked.

Pythagoras came over and looked at the rolled pastries with a critical eye. Ariadne found herself quite anxious about what he would say.

“Perfect,” he said. “Definitely much neater than mine.”

Ariadne flushed at the praise. “What next?” she asked.

“I'm supposed to take them downstairs to the baker's ovens but I don't suppose you...”

Ariadne adjusted her scarf to cover up her hair and part of her face. “I think I can, don't you?”

Pythagoras grinned. “Okay. Let's go.”

Ariadne followed Pythagoras down the stairs and into the street. No one would expect to see her there so it was easy enough to keep her face turned away from the guards they passed and to slip into the bakery along with Pythagoras, who seemed quite unfazed about sneaking around. She suspected that he and Jason and Hercules got up to far more mischief than they let her know.

The baker was a grumpy man who called Pythagoras a name Ariadne had never heard before but which, judging by Pythagoras' face, was not a compliment. Pythagoras didn't react though, the definition of calm and collected as he passed over their pastries and the baker put them into the hot oven.

Ariadne looked around, fascinated by the organised chaos she could see on display. It was even more chaotic than the palace kitchens.

“Move!” one of the workers growled in Ariadne's face and she took a step backwards, nearly upturning the fresh from the oven bread if Pythagoras hadn't got there first.

“Thank you,” Ariadne whispered to Pythagoras, who was pressed a little more closely to her than she was used to. It felt nice though, like what she imagined having a brother looking out for her was like.

“I think we might want to leave now,” Pythagoras said.

“Good idea,” Ariadne agreed.

They slipped out of the bakery, shouts and calls following them as they left but they didn't turn back in case those voices were meant for them. Instead they hurried back towards Pythagoras' house where they came across Jason and Hercules lugging what looked like a large boar badly hidden under a blanket.

Ariadne and Pythagoras looked at each other with the same confused expression on their faces.

“I probably don't want to know, do I?” Ariadne asked Pythagoras.

“I know I certainly don't,” Pythagoras agreed. “Would you care for a drink?”

Ariadne smiled, both at the offer and the incredulous looks on Jason and Hercules' faces. “Why, Pythagoras, I rather think that I do.”

Pythagoras grinned at her and offered her his arm, which she took, making sure that her disguise, such as it was, was still in place. She didn't know how long she might get away with this, but she rather thought it would be fun trying.

“See you later,” Pythagoras said to the others.

“Um?” Jason said and then opened and closed his mouth, a little like a fish.

“See you later, boys,” Ariadne said, trying to keep a straight face and not entirely succeeding.

Then she and Pythagoras walked off in the direction of the tavern. Behind them she could hear a lot of confused muttering until Hercules loudly declared that they would be along to join them as soon as they got their pack of blankets stored in their rooms.

“Who does he think he's fooling?” Ariadne asked.

Pythagoras snorted. “Himself, mostly.” He slowed down his pace and Ariadne did the same. “Are you sure about this? Going to the tavern?”

“My father might have had a lot of rules, but there's nothing that says a queen can't spend an afternoon with her friends. I just won't mention where.”

Pythagoras blinked in surprise and then turned away, but not before Ariadne saw the soft, pleased look her words had elicited.

Friends. It seemed strange even to her to think that she now had friends when so much of her childhood had been a lonely existence full of servants who could only care about her so much. It felt right though that these three men, strange in their own different ways, would be her friends. Whatever her role in the future would be, whatever mantle she had to take up, she knew their loyalty and friendship would never be in question.

But that would come later. Now she just needed to work out how to get away with her latest adventure. And maybe finally find out why Pythagoras was so obsessed with triangles.  



End file.
